Does anyone think CA put out the Leak patch just to see if we like things.

**Quickening** · 04-16-2007, 14:09

Originally Posted by R'as al Ghul

Here's a point against the leaking on purpose:

It doesn't work with 1.1.
Leaking a patch which screws all 1.1 installs would clearly be a stupid idea.
Add to it that the casual gamer or user doesn't know how to get a torrent makes it even more obvious.
Nevertheless, CA would do good to check the feedback and improve their patch while they're still at it.

Actually those reasonings are evidence for them leaking the patch. They know that only hardcore fans will know about and go to the effort of downloading the torrent and using the patch. This way the perception of CA by the wider audience is not damaged but they still get feedback. It's not an "official" release yet they still requested feedback from those using it. Why do that when by their own words the patch was not ready to be released in the first place?

But yes as someone else said it doesn't matter. The important thing is that they are working on it and Im very happy that the cannon/ballista tower bug is also due to be fixed. As it is, Im enjoying this leaked patch.

**R'as al Ghul** · 04-16-2007, 14:18

Originally Posted by Quickening

Actually those reasonings are evidence for them leaking the patch. They know that only hardcore fans will know about and go to the effort of downloading the torrent and using the patch.

You'd have a point if CA didn't say that they don't cater to hardcore players.
They would be stupid not to ask for feedback, now that it's widely discussed. It's beta testing for free.

**Lupiscanis** · 04-16-2007, 14:36

Originally Posted by Quickening

Actually those reasonings are evidence for them leaking the patch. They know that only hardcore fans will know about and go to the effort of downloading the torrent and using the patch. This way the perception of CA by the wider audience is not damaged but they still get feedback. It's not an "official" release yet they still requested feedback from those using it. Why do that when by their own words the patch was not ready to be released in the first place?

But yes as someone else said it doesn't matter. The important thing is that they are working on it and Im very happy that the cannon/ballista tower bug is also due to be fixed. As it is, Im enjoying this leaked patch.

But it is damaged because there will be a percieved bias towards those who know how to get the 1.2 patch (read: "hardcore"), and those who can't (read: "non-hardcore") will be a little irked because they don't have it.

**Quickening** · 04-16-2007, 14:40

Originally Posted by Lupiscanis

But it is damaged because there will be a percieved bias towards those who know how to get the 1.2 patch (read: "hardcore"), and those who can't (read: "non-hardcore") will be a little irked because they don't have it.

But casual gamers will never know about it. And even if they did, it's not CAs' fault if they don't know how to use torrents. Especially when it's for downloading an unofficial patch.

**diotavelli** · 04-16-2007, 14:55

Originally Posted by Quickening

But casual gamers will never know about it. And even if they did, it's not CAs' fault if they don't know how to use torrents. Especially when it's for downloading an unofficial patch.

Casual gamers would get to know about it if someone within CA or Sega blew the whistle or the fact that the patch had been leaked intentionally was uncovered in some other fashion.

This conspiracy theory only works if you assume that CA and Sega have absolute confidence that there is no way that people could find out the patch was 'leaked' intentionally. Given that they couldn't have absolute confidence that that is the case, the conspiracy theory doesn't work.

Therefore discussions as to whether CA might benefit or not are entirely hypothetical.

The idea that CA suits would seriously consider letting hardcore gamers test an unofficial release of a patch, when doing so would involved giving tacit support to torrents and lying to their customer base, is laughable.

**pike master** · 04-16-2007, 15:36

lets sum it up this way

who is cheaper to test the patch. a skeleton crew of expensively payed team from sega or a much larger group of consumers who will do it for free and not only that but do it in many times the number of sega testers.

**diotavelli** · 04-16-2007, 16:01

Originally Posted by mad cat mech

lets sum it up this way

who is cheaper to test the patch. a skeleton crew of expensively payed team from sega or a much larger group of consumers who will do it for free and not only that but do it in many times the number of sega testers.

Or, more plausibly, let's sum it up this way:

Which is a better business strategy? Leave customers (who have already handed over their money) playing a bugged game whilst you get a working patch built or release a bugged patch that will be distributed by a mechanism you are publicly opposed to, lie about not having been authorised the release and risk getting loads of really, really bad PR as a result.

Put yourself in the shoes of the CA and Sega suits involved. If you did want to get the patch beta tested without officially releasing it, how would you go about it? Use forums such as the .Org to recruit a load of beta testers, building goodwill in the hardcore gaming community by your obvious desire to collaborate and involving no risk to your company whatsoever? Or follow the high risk strategy of leaking bugged software that will be distributed by torrent and then lying about it?

**Martok** · 04-17-2007, 01:38

This thread has already come close to the flames a couple times, and appears to have reached the end of its usefulness anyway. (Plus, all this going around in circles makes me dizzy.

)

Closed.